Flash Flash Revolution - View Single Post - An Album A Day Keeps The Doctor Away

EzExZeRo7497 · 06-16-2014, 10:29 AM

June 16th, 2014
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The Book About My Idle Plot on a Vague Anxiety by Toe
I have absolutely no idea what that title even means. Maybe that horse animal thing in the album cover could explain it. Toe is a Japanese post-rock/math rock band. Some people herald this band as one of the best math rock bands today. Some people find the drummer is the only redeeming part of the band. Whatever it is, toe has made a name for themselves in the Japanese post-rock community. The Book About My Idle Plot on a Vague Anxiety is their debut studio album.

Whoa, those drums. They're very very prominent here, far more than any post-rock act I know. Kodoku no Hatsumei is quite jazzy and relaxing overall. The delicate guitar melody really does it for me, it's quite wonderful. However, it's the drumming that makes the track very enjoyable. While they are very prominent and often loud, they're very complementary. These instruments create this natural lush atmosphere in the song's 3 minute lifespan. Though it's not anything new, it is done considerably well. Very solid track.

Tremolo + Delay is a pretty neat jam. While not as cathartic as the track before it, it does make a cohesive and soothing mixture of sounds. It's hard for me to describe how I feel when I listen to this. It reminds me of some of Flashbulb's tracks, particularly The Basement _____ series and That Missing Week. However, this is executed far better. The guitars, combined with the slick drumming, form this cozy little atmosphere that is just sublime.

It does have some weaker tracks, unfortunately. Mukougishi Ga Shiru Yume misses the mark quite a bit. It's relaxing sure, but doesn't provide anything else more than that. I think the drumming is a little too excessive here, some parts just felt a little too fast. The track just feels a little uninspired overall, it's nothing too new. It's done well yes, but not well enough to really shine to me.

This is a personal gripe more than anything else, but I actually find the drumming too excessive. Drumming by itself doesn't quite create anything particularly beautiful, unlike the guitar or piano. It really needs to complement some other instrument to make it truly shine. The album does prove my point. Most of the moments here that I didn't like as much are the prominent drumming sections. I'm not saying that drumming is necessarily bad, though. With drumming this loud and prominent, something is needed to balance it out. Fortunately, the guitar here works very well as a counter-balance.

The entire album is a little trite, with its generic post-rock structures. However, it is compensated with intricate instrumentation and a far more powerful sound. Not powerful as in loud, but by how much it affects the listener viscerally. In addition, there's also the very jazzy and technical drummer.The drumming in particular does stand out from the rest of the band. That's probably where the math rock elements come in. It is the main thing that stands out from other post-rock acts. While the differentiation is neat, I can't say that it is necessarily good. It doesn't necessarily improve the album's quality for me.

Very good album, but not particularly spectacular. That's really the only reason why I'm not giving it an 8/10. It's just something that sounds quite good, but doesn't quite make too much of a mark. Unmemorable is probably the best term for what I feel. No denying that this is a great album though. These guys have a lot of potential, but they're stuck with the normal conventions of post-rock as it is. Maybe if Toe stepped away from the typical post-rock structure, they'd shine a lot more. Who knows though. All I know is that I'll get their sophomore album eventually...

Album Highlights: Koduko no Hatsumei, Tremolo + Delay
Track Average Rating: 3.64/5
Overall Rating: 7/10
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Pine by Olan Mill (recommended by Trogdor!!!!)
Olan Mill is the ambient project of Alex Smalley and Svitlana Samoylenko. They combine modern classical and ambient to create their sound. Pine is the first album I've listened to from them. I have listened to one of their tracks before though, I thought it was okay. I'm not sure if this album will change my impression of them or not, we'll see.

The first track, Spare Smoke Template, reminds me of two artists. Stars of the Lid and Eluvium (particularly Copia). It's just as dreamy and euphoric as most SotL tracks, but has the cinematic elements of Copia. The SotL influence is more prominent for sure, which also brings the problems most SotL tracks have. It's a bit too light for me, it goes by the other ear pretty quick.

Country shows the predominant Stars of the Lid influence. While the atmosphere is just as light as the previous track's, it has some weight to it. For one, I feel like there is a base to the track. There's this one particular drone in the entire track, which really holds the track still. The brighter drones make the environment look quite pretty. The piano in the last minute feels unnecessary though, makes it too clustered. Not too fond of that.

Stars of the Lid, Stars of the Lid, Stars of the Lid. This may very well be a Stars of the Lid album, very few would tell the difference. Pine feels a little darker, but it's not very noticeable. I think their striking similarity is what turns me off from this album. While Olan Mill has some orchestration in the background, it doesn't help much. In fact, I think it detracts from the enjoyment of the album. A Heavy Leg Cycle does this, it loses the light and lush atmosphere the previous three tracks have. It's almost disappointing to know that the best tracks here feel like another artist's. There are two tracks that stand out in this album though. Particularly Flume and The Prescribed Individual. Flume is a loud and bright drone track, can't particularly pinpoint to any artist. The Prescribed Individual is a neat little modern classical track.

Most of my criticisms with SotL apply here. It's a bit too long-winded and unmemorable. These tracks fly through the other ear quite quickly. Bright drones aren't my thing, and this album has a lot of it. The only track that I remember quite a bit is The Prescribed Individual. Which funnily enough, is the most depressing track here. It reminds me of Max Richter's The Blue Notebooks a little. A lot more minimal though, but still quite effective. Favourite track.

Not too fond of this. It's decent ambient sure, but it doesn't do much. The tracks that resemble SotL are good, but nothing special. The other tracks that don't resemble SotL as much aren't always great. Most of them are slightly weaker than the ones that resemble Stars of the Lid, at least to me. I realise that I mention Stars of the Lid too much here, but the comparison here is inevitable. It's very clear that Olan Mill is influenced by them, way way too much. It doesn't give them a particularly unique sound unfortunately. They put in too much effort emulating SotL, I feel that they forgot how to make their own sound. Oh well, the tracks here are decent at least. I do want something darker from Olan Mill though. Maybe that'd be something they could try out soon.

If you really like Stars of the Lid and want more, get this album.

Album Highlights: Disempowered, The Prescribed Individual
Track Average Rating: 3.1/5
Overall Rating: 6/10

06-16-2014, 10:29 AM	#165
EzExZeRo7497 ⠀ Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Singapore, SG Age: 26 Posts: 6,858	Re: An Album A Day Keeps The Doctor Away \| 365 Album Challenge June 16th, 2014 ¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ The Book About My Idle Plot on a Vague Anxiety by Toe I have absolutely no idea what that title even means. Maybe that horse animal thing in the album cover could explain it. Toe is a Japanese post-rock/math rock band. Some people herald this band as one of the best math rock bands today. Some people find the drummer is the only redeeming part of the band. Whatever it is, toe has made a name for themselves in the Japanese post-rock community. The Book About My Idle Plot on a Vague Anxiety is their debut studio album. Whoa, those drums. They're very very prominent here, far more than any post-rock act I know. Kodoku no Hatsumei is quite jazzy and relaxing overall. The delicate guitar melody really does it for me, it's quite wonderful. However, it's the drumming that makes the track very enjoyable. While they are very prominent and often loud, they're very complementary. These instruments create this natural lush atmosphere in the song's 3 minute lifespan. Though it's not anything new, it is done considerably well. Very solid track. Tremolo + Delay is a pretty neat jam. While not as cathartic as the track before it, it does make a cohesive and soothing mixture of sounds. It's hard for me to describe how I feel when I listen to this. It reminds me of some of Flashbulb's tracks, particularly The Basement _____ series and That Missing Week. However, this is executed far better. The guitars, combined with the slick drumming, form this cozy little atmosphere that is just sublime. It does have some weaker tracks, unfortunately. Mukougishi Ga Shiru Yume misses the mark quite a bit. It's relaxing sure, but doesn't provide anything else more than that. I think the drumming is a little too excessive here, some parts just felt a little too fast. The track just feels a little uninspired overall, it's nothing too new. It's done well yes, but not well enough to really shine to me. This is a personal gripe more than anything else, but I actually find the drumming too excessive. Drumming by itself doesn't quite create anything particularly beautiful, unlike the guitar or piano. It really needs to complement some other instrument to make it truly shine. The album does prove my point. Most of the moments here that I didn't like as much are the prominent drumming sections. I'm not saying that drumming is necessarily bad, though. With drumming this loud and prominent, something is needed to balance it out. Fortunately, the guitar here works very well as a counter-balance. The entire album is a little trite, with its generic post-rock structures. However, it is compensated with intricate instrumentation and a far more powerful sound. Not powerful as in loud, but by how much it affects the listener viscerally. In addition, there's also the very jazzy and technical drummer.The drumming in particular does stand out from the rest of the band. That's probably where the math rock elements come in. It is the main thing that stands out from other post-rock acts. While the differentiation is neat, I can't say that it is necessarily good. It doesn't necessarily improve the album's quality for me. Very good album, but not particularly spectacular. That's really the only reason why I'm not giving it an 8/10. It's just something that sounds quite good, but doesn't quite make too much of a mark. Unmemorable is probably the best term for what I feel. No denying that this is a great album though. These guys have a lot of potential, but they're stuck with the normal conventions of post-rock as it is. Maybe if Toe stepped away from the typical post-rock structure, they'd shine a lot more. Who knows though. All I know is that I'll get their sophomore album eventually... Album Highlights: Koduko no Hatsumei, Tremolo + Delay Track Average Rating: 3.64/5 Overall Rating: 7/10 ¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ Pine by Olan Mill (recommended by Trogdor!!!!) Olan Mill is the ambient project of Alex Smalley and Svitlana Samoylenko. They combine modern classical and ambient to create their sound. Pine is the first album I've listened to from them. I have listened to one of their tracks before though, I thought it was okay. I'm not sure if this album will change my impression of them or not, we'll see. The first track, Spare Smoke Template, reminds me of two artists. Stars of the Lid and Eluvium (particularly Copia). It's just as dreamy and euphoric as most SotL tracks, but has the cinematic elements of Copia. The SotL influence is more prominent for sure, which also brings the problems most SotL tracks have. It's a bit too light for me, it goes by the other ear pretty quick. Country shows the predominant Stars of the Lid influence. While the atmosphere is just as light as the previous track's, it has some weight to it. For one, I feel like there is a base to the track. There's this one particular drone in the entire track, which really holds the track still. The brighter drones make the environment look quite pretty. The piano in the last minute feels unnecessary though, makes it too clustered. Not too fond of that. Stars of the Lid, Stars of the Lid, Stars of the Lid. This may very well be a Stars of the Lid album, very few would tell the difference. Pine feels a little darker, but it's not very noticeable. I think their striking similarity is what turns me off from this album. While Olan Mill has some orchestration in the background, it doesn't help much. In fact, I think it detracts from the enjoyment of the album. A Heavy Leg Cycle does this, it loses the light and lush atmosphere the previous three tracks have. It's almost disappointing to know that the best tracks here feel like another artist's. There are two tracks that stand out in this album though. Particularly Flume and The Prescribed Individual. Flume is a loud and bright drone track, can't particularly pinpoint to any artist. The Prescribed Individual is a neat little modern classical track. Most of my criticisms with SotL apply here. It's a bit too long-winded and unmemorable. These tracks fly through the other ear quite quickly. Bright drones aren't my thing, and this album has a lot of it. The only track that I remember quite a bit is The Prescribed Individual. Which funnily enough, is the most depressing track here. It reminds me of Max Richter's The Blue Notebooks a little. A lot more minimal though, but still quite effective. Favourite track. Not too fond of this. It's decent ambient sure, but it doesn't do much. The tracks that resemble SotL are good, but nothing special. The other tracks that don't resemble SotL as much aren't always great. Most of them are slightly weaker than the ones that resemble Stars of the Lid, at least to me. I realise that I mention Stars of the Lid too much here, but the comparison here is inevitable. It's very clear that Olan Mill is influenced by them, way way too much. It doesn't give them a particularly unique sound unfortunately. They put in too much effort emulating SotL, I feel that they forgot how to make their own sound. Oh well, the tracks here are decent at least. I do want something darker from Olan Mill though. Maybe that'd be something they could try out soon. If you really like Stars of the Lid and want more, get this album. Album Highlights: Disempowered, The Prescribed Individual Track Average Rating: 3.1/5 Overall Rating: 6/10 Last edited by EzExZeRo7497; 06-17-2014 at 09:56 AM..